Value of vacations--How much is too much?

[kcrew]

So I am exploring vacation options(not Disney) for a family of 5, including 3 teen boys, plus possibly my Mom. I just can't wrap my head around the prices. When does the price just become too much? Having the funds is not an issue--no saving or borrowing required--but I am very frugal by nature and trying to determine the relative "worth" of a family vacation.

I am wondering how others determine what is a prudent price to pay for a vacation?

 

[Bete]

We go to Disney World mostly when there is free dining and we do value resorts. This has worked for us; because, we have a flexible schedule and no kids. We were able to do this for about 10 trips with free dining and I enjoyed those trips. We really maximized the free dining plan. I know free dining hasn't been around this year. Without it, I struggle going back even though we could do it financially. Last two Disney trips we actually stayed off site where we were able to have an included hot breakfast and we enjoyed some evening meals at the resort that were included, too. The evening meals were comparable to quick service. The evening meals were offered three times during the week, not everyday. Anyway, we had a kitchen included and a two room suite. We enjoyed having two TVs and the large space. I'm finding offsite being okay for us if we get a good deal. The same offsite place we used has increased their prices this year; so, I'm not as attracted to that place, either, now. I'm just going to hold tight and see what develops in the next few months with deals onsite and offsite. I do not perceive the current deals as value oriented and I'm frugal, too.

We've been taking other trips over the last five years and we like Williamsburg and Pigeon Forge for cheaper choices than Disney World. There are other vacations you can take and enjoy yourself. You just have to decide what you want to do. You may want a beach vacation and you can always find a deal some place for that type of vacation.

I actually like skipping a year, now from Disney. It seems to be more enjoyable when we go back. It's like we miss it a little and that makes it more enjoyable.

All cruise companies are taking a hit because of the Carnival problems; so, there are good deals out there for cruising everywhere, right now.

If you really need to go to Disney World cheapen up on resort and food choices. Maybe, do a couple days without the parks there and save on ticket costs.

We recently did a neighboring state vacation and visited museums and went to a few plays and we could drive there easily. This was fine for us, too.

There are a lot of choices out there for family fun.

 

[Lisa71]

Memories and new experiences I think the value varies for each person. I have never regretted a vacation. Shop around and find deals.

 

[ceecee]

Having the funds is not an issue--no saving or borrowing required--but I am very frugal by nature and trying to determine the relative "worth" of a family vacation.

Cost of vacation=Priceless! How many opportunities do you have to vacation with your teens???? Or even your mom???? Since you have the $ do it now, later isn't always an option! We realized a few yrs ago our "family" vacations were getting close to being over with a teenager, so we started doing 2 per year.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

You know, it's something we're going through right now. I've put together about 8 or 10 different vacation options. Oddly enough, they all price out around the same money (within a few hundred bucks). The longer drives & longer duration trips all have lots of free stuff to do. The short trips closer to home will all require expensive activities & expensive accomodations. Still don't know what we're going to do, but by golly we ARE going somewhere!

 

[Pakey]

I still take my adult children on family vacations. Time together as they get older becomes more valuable.

Out of all of my possessions, vacation memories rank at the top of the list.

 

[Darcy03231]

We have four children and always took a family vacation each year. Like you, money wasn't an issue. We planned and budgeted for it each year. Some years the budget was bigger than others, but every year we did something as a family.

Fast forward to today. Kids are now 29, 25, 21 and 19. They all have their own lives. The youngest two still live at home (they're in college). Oldest lives with his S.O. about an hour away and the 2nd oldest lives in GA with her S.O. (we're in NH). We see the oldest two a couple of times a year, mostly due to their schedules. I really cherish the memories of our family vacations. As they got older and out on their own their schedules no longer mesh with ours and its harder to get together. They also carve out time to spend with their S.O.'s families too. I don't regret a dime that we spent taking those vacations and spending the time when they were younger.

 

[HayGan]

I set out a vacation budget for the year and look at options for what we can do within that budget. Vacations mean much more to me than material things. I work very hard for my money and I want my family to enjoy the benefits of that hard work.

 

[WizardLarz]

Since your not planning on Disney, why not try your own back yard/State. Most States have great places Historic and other wise to see and explore.

 

[PrincessDadx2]

I can deal with about up to $5,000. Anything above that is

Usually try to stay in the $2,000 - $3,000 range.

 

[ptlohmysoul]

So I am exploring vacation options(not Disney) for a family of 5, including 3 teen boys, plus possibly my Mom. I just can't wrap my head around the prices. When does the price just become too much? Having the funds is not an issue--no saving or borrowing required--but I am very frugal by nature and trying to determine the relative "worth" of a family vacation.

I am wondering how others determine what is a prudent price to pay for a vacation?

When looking for hotels, etc. be sure to check out other timeshare deals, meaning timeshare owned places that rent or timeshare owners renting points/stays. Get the most out of the money you do have set aside to spend.

 

[ilovemk76]

So I am exploring vacation options(not Disney) for a family of 5, including 3 teen boys, plus possibly my Mom. I just can't wrap my head around the prices. When does the price just become too much? Having the funds is not an issue--no saving or borrowing required--but I am very frugal by nature and trying to determine the relative "worth" of a family vacation.

I am wondering how others determine what is a prudent price to pay for a vacation?

If it is a destination I want to go to and the cost of the vacation fits my budgeted vacation amount then I go.

 

[stayhomemom77]

How do we determine what is a prudent price for a vacation?

Honestly, I think you just KNOW! When you look at something you can just feel yourself deciding either that it's worth it or it isn't.

We take all the factors into consideration (duration, distance, location, activities, transportation, desirability, etc) and decide what we think would be a fair price for the experience and then judge the price tag accordingly.

I approach vacation planning one of two ways...

Either I set a budget and find a trip to match


OR


I pull a vacation from the bucket list and price it out. If it seems too expensive, I do tons of research trying to preserve the experience whilst making concessions that bring the cost down. (ie switching cruise lines, driving versus flying, finding less expensive accommodations a little further afield from the sights, etc).

For example, our next vacation will be a Mediterranean cruise. This is at the top of our family's bucket list and we've been looking forward to it for years. The kids are finally old enough to appreciate and keep up with the itinerary DH and I want to follow. Because it's so important to us, we are prepared to pay more for this particular trip than we do for most of our other vacations. It's value is increased simply because we want it so bad.

Even so, we ARE looking for ways to bring the cost down. Unless we get a ridiculously great last minute deal...we will not (gulp) be cruising with Disney. I have spent hours researching the travel options. Some discount airlines only fly on certain days and to certain European cities. I have found that quite a lot of money can be saved by taking advantage of these adjustments.

We've also really cut back on our souvenier money in recent years. A small token from our travels doesn't add to our memories of the experience any less than a big expensive one does.

Good luck with your trip. I hope you can fiind a version of what you want with a price you can be happy with!!

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

How do we determine what is a prudent price for a vacation?

Honestly, I think you just KNOW! When you look at something you can just feel yourself deciding either that it's worth it or it isn't.

We take all the factors into consideration (duration, distance, location, activities, transportation, desirability, etc) and decide what we think would be a fair price for the experience and then judge the price tag accordingly.

I approach vacation planning one of two ways...

Either I set a budget and find a trip to match


OR


I pull a vacation from the bucket list and price it out. If it seems too expensive, I do tons of research trying to preserve the experience whilst making concessions that bring the cost down. (ie switching cruise lines, driving versus flying, finding less expensive accommodations a little further afield from the sights, etc).

For example, our next vacation will be a Mediterranean cruise. This is at the top of our family's bucket list and we've been looking forward to it for years. The kids are finally old enough to appreciate and keep up with the itinerary DH and I want to follow. Because it's so important to us, we are prepared to pay more for this particular trip than we do for most of our other vacations. It's value is increased simply because we want it so bad.

Even so, we ARE looking for ways to bring the cost down. Unless we get a ridiculously great last minute deal...we will not (gulp) be cruising with Disney. I have spent hours researching the travel options. Some discount airlines only fly on certain days and to certain European cities. I have found that quite a lot of money can be saved by taking advantage of these adjustments.

We've also really cut back on our souvenier money in recent years. A small token from our travels doesn't add to our memories of the experience any less than a big expensive one does.

Good luck with your trip. I hope you can fiind a version of what you want with a price you can be happy with!!

I agree 100%! I like to pull from our bucket list.

I feel there's so much of the world I want to share with my kids. As time went on I felt like I was doing a disservice to my kids to only show them WDW. Some places of natural beauty I felt I just HAD to show them, like Niagara Falls, Yosemite & Grand Canyon. Other trips were more about our nation's history like Williamsburg & Statue of Liberty. (DC is on our list too.)
Some places are just neat to visit like riding a cable car in San Fran or touring Alcatraz or Hoover Dam. In the end, it's educational for all of us, even if it doesn't feel like it at the time.

To me, this is priceless. Usually you kind of know what amount feels right. Dh can't enjoy himself knowing a trip is super expensive but a little splurge here & there doesn't hurt. There is a "happy medium" where it's a nice trip but not too outrageous.

We usually take several smaller trips each year but since this summer's vacation is a Med cruise, it will be our only vacation for the year. We used to have the USAirways visa card & saved a ton of miles over the years so we only had to buy 1 seat on the plane. Without this, we probably wouldn't be doing this trip as that would put dh in that feeling like we're spending too much & makes it hard for him to enjoy. He really wants to visit Costa Rica but the only times we can go with our kids' school schedule is in their rainy season & they're too old to just pull out of school. CR will just have to wait til the kids are done school or we'll go on our own once they're grown.

Happy Travels!!

 

[hsmamato2]

I still take my adult children on family vacations. Time together as they get older becomes more valuable.

Out of all of my possessions, vacation memories rank at the top of the list.

I don't know how much is too much,that varies by person,I'd say. I'd much rather spend time and money doing things, seeing things....vacations are making memories,carrying on favorite traditions(disney) and seeing new things (National Parks,Europe,you name it)
I decide what I want to do,then figure out if I can make it fit my budget....

 

[bbak3030]

While I love Disney, we will easily spend $4,000 on our trip next March. We won't do that often.

We typically go to the beach every year. We love Destin, Fl and rent a big house with a private pool with my family. It usually runs about $600 per family for the whole week. We cook a lot of our own meals and eat out a few times. We enjoy the beach and pool. It's a frugal vacay, but we love it. It's nice and relaxing, which Disney is not.

Disney is definitely a splurge for us. We are actually going to Branson this summer with my in-laws. They own a timeshare so the villa is no charge. But with all of our food (MIL does not cook on vacation) and activities, I think this vacation will easily run us $2,000. And I'd rather be at the beach. Lol.

 

[crisi]

You weigh the experience you anticipate against the price.

Our trip to Washington DC was not terribly expensive, but the experience was amazing for the kids - that was a high value vacation.

We went to Hawaii, which was pretty expensive - and while it was worthwhile to do it once, I'm not likely to spend that much for that vacation a second time. It was a vacation that was worth the money we put into it once.

Europe is expensive, but again, its an incredible experience, I'd do that again (and my daughter and I are next summer - the boys don't want to go)

But a weekend at a waterpark - that isn't expensive, but to me its a really low value vacation.

Part of the way to look at things is through the concept of opportunity cost. You always give up something when you do something. Vacations involve two kinds of opportunity costs - time and money. Would you rather spend your free time doing something else? Would you rather spend your disposable money on something else?

 

[kcrew]

Thanks for the input. I definitely feel the urgency of my boys growing up and having limited time left to vacation as a family. However, time availability is a huge factor and traveling off season and looking for bargain dates is not an option. Also, my husband and boys are very picky, to the point where it stresses me out and I just want to give up. They really only want an all inclusive tropical (Cancun) vacation and airfare alone cannot be found for under $600 so that is $3600 off the bat for 6!! All in we are looking at $10,000+++ for a week....I guess that was my original dilemma...is it REALLY worth that kind of money?

So other options...I have looked at cruises, and the teaser price sounds great, but then you add in taxes and gratuities and port activities and airfare and drinks--wow the price is right up there again.

A Myrtle Beach type vacation was great when they were young--pools, waterparks, sand castles, eating in the condo, early to bed...now they would be bored to death.

Amusement parks? Everyone hates lines, and they are unavoidable since we have to travel in the summer.

History? They'd rather stay home.

UGH!!!!!!!!

 

[Jedana]

I think the price point is different for everyone. Some people are good with spending $15000 on a European vacation for 2. Some people spend less than $1000 to go to WDW for a family of 4.


I say that it is too much when you are putting yourself into serious debt to take a vacation. My vacation debt limit (the amount I am willing to eat for a period of 3 months or more after vacation) is $300. Anything more, I need to have it paid for up front.

Also, if you are going on vacation and putting off major things, like medical expenses, vehicle or home repairs, etc.

 

[Colleen27]

I think it is really personal, like most spending decisions. I think $40 is too much for a purse and spent a month thinking over whether to buy one at that price at WDW. Other people collect the Disney Dooneys without giving it a second thought. But I think nothing of dropping $5K+ on a vacation while someone else might balk at the thought of spending even half that. If I have extra the budget after the bills are paid and the savings are funded, travel is the first way I'll look to spend it. Others may place a higher value on other things.